Brian Walton's news and commentary on the St. Louis Cardinals (TM) and their minor league system

Matt Holliday, Mr. 30/20

In addition to two good defensive plays Tuesday night, St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Matt Holliday crushed his 20th home run of the season in the sixth inning of his club’s one-sided offensive explosion against the Colorado Rockies in Denver. The opposite field shot came to earth in the Rockies bullpen.

Earlier in the game, the 33-year-old smashed his 30th double in 2013, as well.

In doing so, Holliday reached 30 doubles and 20 home runs for the eighth consecutive season, the last four-plus with St. Louis. In the process, Holliday became the seventh Cardinal in team history with four seasons of 30 doubles and 20 home runs.

+ The reason Holliday is “4+” is that he completed a 30/20 season in 2009 after being traded to the Cardinals mid-season. That year, he had 23 doubles and 11 homers with Oakland and followed that with 16 and 13, respectively, after joining St. Louis.

In an appropriate bit of synergy, Holliday’s first three 30/20 seasons were achieved while he was a member of the Rockies, the club against which he reached the 2013 dual milestone Tuesday night.

Matt is signed up for three more years, his age 34, 35, 36 seasons. Beltran is 36 now. If Matt holds up and maintains production as well as Carlos, we will be in good shape. He did a nice job in the field as well as at the plate last night. Runs the bases well for a big guy.

Beltran, by the way, doesn’t look right at the plate these days. His usual graceful swing is absent. Wonder if he is battling some ailment. With Craig out, he will just have to tough it out.

I like Carlos and appreciate his contributions but………………the Cards would be crazy IMHO to sign him for another year if he wants over 10 million next season.He has faded since All-star break and power numbers are way down.

Beltran’s numbers are down in the second half, but perhaps not as much as you suggest. August was his best month this season in BA (.366), OBP and OPS (.990). He has been terrible in September, though (.176), and had a bad July, too. His home run and RBI totals are down, but doubles are up.

I suspect the Cards will make him a one-year qualifying offer to get the draft pick, but Beltran will want multiple years, here or somewhere else. One last big payday.

Beltran had 19 HRs by end of June. 4HRs in 3 months isn`t cutting the mustard.In Beltrans defense the whole team has had a down HR year except for Matt Adams.You are definitely right that the Cards are a doubles hitting bunch.Maybe they need to eat their Wheaties and some of doubles can start clearing the fence.

Cards do have a high total of runs scored.The problem is the Cards have too many games where the
offense goes totally quiet.HRs where used to show power decline.I mentioned the Cards doubles hitting this year .Another problem is when you have a slow team like the Cards and the need to sometimes get 3 hits to score.Again lack of overall team speed hurts and having a big bopper or two helps make up for that.My question is this;once the playoffs start and Cards are not hitting much how do the runs score? Cards can`t still bases or hit bunches of Homers.So unless Cards have nights luike last night they will be up Sh*t creek and out of the playoffs.

I agree about the lack of speed. But the intermittent natrure of the offense would not be cured by hitting more HRs. When the offense isn’t hitting, they are aren’t hitting anything, HRs or otherwise. The focus is on situational hitting, hitting w/RISP, which is good. If they happen to hit a HR in that situation, all the better, but the point is to hit. They are on pace to win more games than last season using this approach, so I see nothing to complain about.

The reason I said Holliday made two good, not great, defensive plays last night was that I thought he made the catch at the wall more difficult than it had to be. Instead of running to the wall full-speed and then coming in if needed, he ran sideways and had to leap at the last second. Bottom line, he made the catch.

What got me thinking about this was your comment about three more years. If it wasn’t for Matt Adams, I could see moving Holliday to first base in a few years and putting Craig in left.

Brian wouldn`t it be possible to still get Holliday some 1B time anyway.If Beltran goes elsewhere for money and playing time Cards could have a situation of Adams playing 1B except against some LHPs and maybe Holliday taking a few games at 1B.Hasn`t Craig said he is much more comfortable in the OF.If Oscar Taveras makes the team next spring and plays RF you still have more players than spots.Either way Cards need to come up with a RH bench bat who is at least a threat (I was hoping Peterson would show enough ?).Robinson is a fine backup but not really a threat to come off the bench a hit a HR .

It would be possible to play Holliday at first, but I don’t see it happening that way – him becoming one of the moving parts. I suspect moving him to first would not be an easy thing to accept but once it is done, it would be done. That is why I said “in a few years.”

For the logjam reason you mentioned, the Cards badly need Taveras to be serviceable in center. My take is that if he hits, the defensive hit will be absorbed, as the Reds did with Choo this season. Still, there could be a lot of gappers rolling to the wall with an outfield of Holliday, Taveras and Craig.

Of course, all it takes is one major injury to change everything.

P.S. A RH bench bat can easily be added as a free agent if needed – assuming Mo sets his sights higher than Wigginton. Beltran (switch-hitter) is going to be too expensive for that role. He really needs to finish his career back in the AL, IMO.

So you think Jay is going to be the 4th OF next year if Taveras makes the team out of Spring training.Assuming Beltran goes elsewhere and Taveras makes team you have a team of
C-Molina,Cruz
1B-Adams
2B-Carpenter,Wong,Descalso
3B-Freese
SS-Kozma
OF-Holliday,Robinson
OF-Taveras, Jay
OF- Craig,

So that leaves SS to be resolved,3B is Freese still here,RH bench bat with pop,Add a little speed to the lineup either by trading for a SS who can run well or a RH bat with some pop and speed.

Holliday is what he is.A solid sometimes All-Star ballplayer.The GIDPs drive people nuts and his adventures in LF do the same.All in all nobody can say he dogs it although some games he looks like he never seen a bat before.

It just amazing that Stan had 10 seasons of 30/20 but he also had 3 of those 10 season with 10 triples or more.Another fact is that Stan did not strikeout over 40 times a season until 1962 when he was 41 ( 46 Ks).In 1948 he hit 39 HRs and only struck out 34 times. Stan had 3 times as many extra base hits as strikeouts in 1948.That my friends is a great season.

I was surprised that Stan had only 10 such seasons. I would have guessed more like 15.

Now that I refresh my memory by looking at his stats, the 1948 season you mention was his first 20-HR year. At the other end of his career, he was in the teens in each of his last six seasons. Very consistent.

Stan played in the big park era. No telling what his numbers would have looked like hitting in today’s band boxes.

The mound was higher in those days, too.

On the other side, he played before the days of late inning specialists coming out of the pen every game, and every staff having multiple high 90s guys. Of course, hitters didn’t have sophisticated training regimens or all the data and video either.

Stan was beyond great, but comparing guys across different eras gets sort of foggy.

This is why I DONT WANT Taveras in CF. He needs to play RF where he will do less defensive damage.

I have very unpopular views about where I want the roster to be next season. I want Craig at 1B and Taveras in RF. I would trade Adams, Jay, and whoever else for a GOOD shortstop, not an OK one or a serviceable one. And I don’t want Tulo—he is a walking advertisement for the Red Cross. JJ Hardy, or get the Rangers to give up one of Andrus or Profar, or even Yunel Escobar if he has calmed down and can get along in the clubhouse.

As for CF, Jacoby Ellsbury is a FA after this season, why not go after him?

Disagree about trading Adams or Jay.Agree just say no to Tulo and his monster salary and ouchies.Ellsbury is just a older version of Jon Jay who will cost much more than Jay.With all the need for pitching the cards could possibly work a deal using Lynn and other parts for a GOOD young SS.

Ellsbury has injury concerns.He has missed half seasons in 2 or the last 4 years.Plus paying him 10 million dolllars is something I have a huge problem with.There are other options out there that Cards need to take Care of before going after a OF.